I was just having a conversation with someone about 'tourist attractions.' Sometimes there seems to be a fine line between historical or iconic and touristy. The particular area in question was Paris. While I can't speak from experience (and she could), I wouldn't want to visit France without going to Paris and seeing the Eiffel Tower. When she visited France she wanted to stay on the outskirts of the city and experience the country. Although admitting the Eiffel Tower was 'neat,' that wasn't necessarily number one on her agenda.
So I don't know if I'm falling into the tourist traps, or why I find it important to visit a famous landmark should there be one in the city I'm visiting. But just the same - I'll be sure to see Big Ben in London and should I ever make it to Paris the Eiffel Tower would be my first stop.
I'm not alone in this method of travel either. Here's Yahoo Travel and Leisure's List of the World's Top Ten Popular Landmarks.
10. The High Line, New York City
9. Swiss Re Building, London
8. St. Peter's Basilica, Rome
7. Millennium Park, Chicago
6. Colosseum, Rome
5. Big Ben, London
4. Eiffel Tower, Paris
3. Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco
2. Empire State Building, New York City
1. Statue of Liberty, New York City.
Click here for the full article. Looks like New York City wins the popularity contest.
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Thursday, January 19, 2012
My Planning Process
I'm getting ready to go to Niagara Falls for the first time this April. I'm planning to stay on the Canadian side of the falls (I have a passport, might as well use it!) and plan on taking in the falls and Ontario. I thought it might be fun (or tedious...you decide) to give a sort of running commentary as I plan - while maybe dropping some tips and useful websites.
So, onward!
Advice of Friends: The first thing I do is ask people I know who have been there what they would suggest as far as places to stay, eat, or visit. Someone who has been where you are going is going to be the perfect source - a lot of times they'll give you a bit of good information a travel site might not have. They'll also be candid with you about what they really thought of certain places and things. If touring the museum of toothpicks is overly priced and boring, a friend will tell you. Don't ask your enemies though, they might lie.
Things to Do: I really like to start planning a trip by deciding what I want to do while I'm there. A fantastic site for this is www.tripadvisor.com. Under their 'Plan a Perfect Trip' banner you can enter the name of the city, select the 'things to do' button and you're on your way to an awesome list of ways to keep busy. Along with each activity you can read user reviews, visitor ratings, view pictures, and usually get a link to the activity's main webpage.
Guide books are also fantastic sources. Popular series include Lonely Planet, Frommer's, Fodor's, and my favorites, DK Books Top 10 Travel Guides. The Top 10s are usually the guide books I buy. They're nicely organized, and provide lists of top 10 restaurants, hotels, night life, day excursions, family fun, etc., etc. And there's a pull out map in the back. They're quick and easy to read (without huge blocks of text), and provide some great information. Also, because I think you should know, my favorite maps are MapEasy. Their name does not lie, they are easy, and pretty...which while traveling is important.
Also, most cities have an official tourism page. Just typing 'visiting' followed by the city's name into your search engine should do the trick. Scroll through the results a bit and see what you can find. The web addresses might look like these, http://www.visitdallas.com/, http://www.ontariotravel.net, or http://www.cityofboston.gov/visitors/.
I have a notebook that I keep with me while I'm planning trips. When I'm searching for things to do, and I find something promising, I write down its name in the book. Along with that I write down the address, the price of admission and/or parking, the hours of operation, and any special information I may need to know for my visit. (Additional information I write down might that the Maid of the Mist departs every 15 minutes) I take this book with me when I go on the vacation so I don't have to look up all the information again.
So, onward!
Advice of Friends: The first thing I do is ask people I know who have been there what they would suggest as far as places to stay, eat, or visit. Someone who has been where you are going is going to be the perfect source - a lot of times they'll give you a bit of good information a travel site might not have. They'll also be candid with you about what they really thought of certain places and things. If touring the museum of toothpicks is overly priced and boring, a friend will tell you. Don't ask your enemies though, they might lie.
Things to Do: I really like to start planning a trip by deciding what I want to do while I'm there. A fantastic site for this is www.tripadvisor.com. Under their 'Plan a Perfect Trip' banner you can enter the name of the city, select the 'things to do' button and you're on your way to an awesome list of ways to keep busy. Along with each activity you can read user reviews, visitor ratings, view pictures, and usually get a link to the activity's main webpage.
Guide books are also fantastic sources. Popular series include Lonely Planet, Frommer's, Fodor's, and my favorites, DK Books Top 10 Travel Guides. The Top 10s are usually the guide books I buy. They're nicely organized, and provide lists of top 10 restaurants, hotels, night life, day excursions, family fun, etc., etc. And there's a pull out map in the back. They're quick and easy to read (without huge blocks of text), and provide some great information. Also, because I think you should know, my favorite maps are MapEasy. Their name does not lie, they are easy, and pretty...which while traveling is important.
Also, most cities have an official tourism page. Just typing 'visiting' followed by the city's name into your search engine should do the trick. Scroll through the results a bit and see what you can find. The web addresses might look like these, http://www.visitdallas.com/, http://www.ontariotravel.net, or http://www.cityofboston.gov/visitors/.
I have a notebook that I keep with me while I'm planning trips. When I'm searching for things to do, and I find something promising, I write down its name in the book. Along with that I write down the address, the price of admission and/or parking, the hours of operation, and any special information I may need to know for my visit. (Additional information I write down might that the Maid of the Mist departs every 15 minutes) I take this book with me when I go on the vacation so I don't have to look up all the information again.
 |
| A page from my Ontario/Niagara Falls notebook |
A Place to Stay: This one can actually be the most time consuming. You don't want to end up sleeping in a flea bag motel. Kayak is a great place to start. By just filling in the required information once, you can search several sites at one time, such as Orbitz and Expedia. Once you find a hotel that is in a good location, and in your price range, make sure you check reviews. Read through them. Kayak will connect you right to reviews from TripAdvisor, which is a fantastic place for finding recommended hotels...or ones you should stay far away from. You might find two or three hotels that sound great and have pretty photos, but nothing but horrible reviews. Of course, some people can never be satisfied so if you're looking for a place with no bad reviews, you'll be looking forever. Just find something that appeals to you, and has 80% good comments.
And that's my process. I know where to stay, what to do, prices and addresses, and I'm set to go!
Friday, January 13, 2012
Skip the Headache at the Airport - Tips for Flying
Carry On Luggage: Your luggage must be of a certain size and/or weight, which varies depending on your airline. You can check individual airline regulations here. You can sometimes get away with a little larger, or a little heavier, but if your bag doesn't fit through the x-ray machine you're going to look like a dope. And you're probably going to have to march yourself back to the luggage check counter and stand in that long line for a second time. In total you are allowed one carry on piece of luggage and one personal bag (purse, briefcase, or small tote). Expedia offers a good chart, by airline, for checked baggage costs and additional fees.
If your carry on luggage contains any liquid or lotion or toothpaste (basically anything that's not solid like a book) it needs to be in a 1 quart, clear, zip-top bag. One bag allowed. Within this bag you may not have anything containing more than 3 ounces. So - 3 ounces, 1 quart, 1 bag. The 3-1-1 rule.
*As a side note, if you get your carry on through security but can't find room in the overhead compartment on the plane, a stewardess will take it from you and have it put in the cargo under the plane. At this point you usually don't have to pay anything.
Security Line: Here are some tips to make getting through the security line faster.
1. You will need to present your boarding pass and ID before you get to the conveyor belt. So have those ready and in your hand.
2. Wear flip flops. You have to take your shoes off, so why not make it easy.
3. Don't wear a belt. If you need one, stuff it in your luggage and put it on after the security check point.
4. Try not to dress in layers. If you need layers, again, put them in your luggage for after. But if you are wearing a coat or a sweater you may have to take it off.
5. Your 1 quart bag and laptops/tablets must come out of your luggage and be placed into a bin separately. So when you pack, keep those at the top.
6. Don't buy a drink right when you enter the airport. Your 8 dollar mochalattechino will just have to go into the trash. Wait until after security.
7. When you are close to the security conveyor belt start getting ready. You can go ahead and get your quart bag or laptop out. If you are wearing shoes you can untie them or even take them off. Everyone behind you will appreciate it.
*As a side note, if you get your carry on through security but can't find room in the overhead compartment on the plane, a stewardess will take it from you and have it put in the cargo under the plane. At this point you usually don't have to pay anything.
Security Line: Here are some tips to make getting through the security line faster.
1. You will need to present your boarding pass and ID before you get to the conveyor belt. So have those ready and in your hand.
2. Wear flip flops. You have to take your shoes off, so why not make it easy.
3. Don't wear a belt. If you need one, stuff it in your luggage and put it on after the security check point.
4. Try not to dress in layers. If you need layers, again, put them in your luggage for after. But if you are wearing a coat or a sweater you may have to take it off.
5. Your 1 quart bag and laptops/tablets must come out of your luggage and be placed into a bin separately. So when you pack, keep those at the top.
6. Don't buy a drink right when you enter the airport. Your 8 dollar mochalattechino will just have to go into the trash. Wait until after security.
7. When you are close to the security conveyor belt start getting ready. You can go ahead and get your quart bag or laptop out. If you are wearing shoes you can untie them or even take them off. Everyone behind you will appreciate it.
8. Once through the metal detector, and once your bags have come down the line, don't just stand there. There are benches and tables nearby where you can put everything back in your bag and put your shoes back on. But move out of line first.
Airport security is always going to be a bit of a pain, and it's always going to be your biggest hold up in getting to your terminal. Just remember that it is for our safety. And there's no reason you can't do everything in your own power to make the system move along a little faster.
Airport security is always going to be a bit of a pain, and it's always going to be your biggest hold up in getting to your terminal. Just remember that it is for our safety. And there's no reason you can't do everything in your own power to make the system move along a little faster.
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
What Is It You Want?
Ok, I'm going to be getting this blog up and running again. It's not my new year's resolution or anything (because that would doom it to failure), just something I loved doing that I lost for awhile. I have a lot of different content, presented in different ways on this blog. But I want to know what the loyal (two) readers want.
Do you like the narrative blogs about places I've been and what I did there? What about the travel tips (like for Mexico and Disney World)? I have a lot of fun doing the 'By the Numbers' blogs, such as the blog about Hilton Head. They might not contain as much information, but they should be amusing to read. And a little unique. And finally, what about the interesting travel articles I share? Sometimes they're newsworthy travel articles, and sometimes they're compiled lists of the best ten whatevers.
My biggest goal (besides remembering to post interesting and applicable posts) is that I want to get readership and subscription way up! I have limited ways of doing that, but if you help me I can reach a lot of people. When I post to facebook, just hit the share button to post to your wall. Then all my friends AND your friends have seen it. It would be really cool for a bunch of people to subscribe, or at least provide your e-mail for updates.
Thanks to everyone who has been and will continue reading. Travel is what I love, and writing is what I love.
So read, share, and leave comments!
Do you like the narrative blogs about places I've been and what I did there? What about the travel tips (like for Mexico and Disney World)? I have a lot of fun doing the 'By the Numbers' blogs, such as the blog about Hilton Head. They might not contain as much information, but they should be amusing to read. And a little unique. And finally, what about the interesting travel articles I share? Sometimes they're newsworthy travel articles, and sometimes they're compiled lists of the best ten whatevers.
My biggest goal (besides remembering to post interesting and applicable posts) is that I want to get readership and subscription way up! I have limited ways of doing that, but if you help me I can reach a lot of people. When I post to facebook, just hit the share button to post to your wall. Then all my friends AND your friends have seen it. It would be really cool for a bunch of people to subscribe, or at least provide your e-mail for updates.
Thanks to everyone who has been and will continue reading. Travel is what I love, and writing is what I love.
So read, share, and leave comments!
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